


water nymph

by breadofthewild



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Canon Related, Childhood, Childhood Memories, F/M, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:48:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22077970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/breadofthewild/pseuds/breadofthewild
Summary: Ferdinand meets a water nymph in Enbarr.
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir & Dorothea Arnault, Ferdinand von Aegir/Dorothea Arnault
Comments: 2
Kudos: 46





	water nymph

**Author's Note:**

> yes, this is their A support retold lmao. i love ferdie and dorothea sm but rarely see popular works on them? idk they're just my fav

On the streets of Enbarr, a small girl clutches a pocket-sized bag in her hands. Her unkempt hair flies in the wind behind her as she dashes through the streets and into alleyways, maneuvering around in a way where the townspeople only see a flash and then a mob. The knights chase the orphan maniacally in a series of shouts in an effort to get her to slow down.

Dorothea darts into a familiar alleyway she had come to make her home, and as she listens for the knights to rush by her in a frenzied chase, she clutches the bag tighter. The sounds of the knights die down, and Dorothea lets herself relax against the grimy building. She slouches to the ground, a drain by her side, the smell so rotten that no one dared to come near this alleyway in the years she had made this her home. She had grown used to the smell in a matter of days, had gotten used to a life of thievery and mischief all to just survive.

In the alleyways of Enbarr, Dorothea slumps to the ground against an old, worn pillow she had found years ago. A scrap of fabric, a pitiful excuse for a blanket, lies across her tiny frame. The girl sleeps, her eyes closed but her vision clear of the people that spit and hurl pebbles at her. A small tear escapes her eyes, and in a seemingly normal afternoon in Enbarr, an orphan weeps herself to sleep.

✿

On the streets of Enbarr, a small boy wanders off from his father and finds himself in the center of town, a tall fountain spouting water from its tip. He has never been in this part of town before, never gone past the borders of the capital, only stayed in his family's own territory. Ferdinand watches in awe as his eyes trace the light of water that gleamed in the sun, his gaze never peeling away.

But finally, as his eyes avert to the pool of the fountain, he finds a girl.

She sits in the water, cupping her hands together and rubbing the water hastily into her skin. She does everything with quick and subtle movements, her eyes darting around herself every second, as if in fear that she would get caught doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing. Ferdinand sees that her clothes are still on, and he wonders if she simply wanted to go for a swim.

Suddenly, the girl does something Ferdinand does not expect.

She opens her mouth, her lips parting to let out a quiet tune he can barely hear above the flow of the fountain and bustling of townspeople. Her eyes are closed then, her arms around her torso, shrinking into herself. But her lips are still singing the words of a song, one Ferdinand does not recognize, but can now hear. They reach his ears in a way that hypnotizes him, the notes ringing in his head like a beautiful opera he's never seen before. He is struck by her voice, one so melodic and beautiful that he cannot help but gape just a little.

Ferdinand continues to watch on in wonder, and as he does, the girl stops singing. Right then and there, Dorothea's eyes drift across the sky, finally landing on a small orange-haired boy.

For a second, she stays still. Her eyes are an emerald that Ferdinand never finds himself forgetting, even into the years of his teenage life. Her hair flows down her back in numerous brown locks, a chestnut color that suits her eyes boldly. Her hair is damp, and so are her clothes, and Ferdinand almost walks up to the girl to ask if she had an extra change of clothes for herself. But all he does instead is stand there, his eyebrows furrowed in a way that let on that he was disgusted. But in reality, all he was was confused.

Confused on how a girl so beautiful had to bathe in the town fountain.

She was like a water nymph, he remembered. That was the last thought that crossed his mind before she picked up her feet and dashed away into the crowd, leaving footprints against the pavement from her wet soles. The sun dried them up in a matter of seconds, and Ferdinand still stood there, his face contorted in a way no one would understand. In fact, he didn't understand either. He couldn't possibly explain why he reacted the way he did that day.

In a few years' time, Ferdinand would not expect to see those same emerald eyes amongst the students that were his classmates.


End file.
